Apple TV 4K using MrMC (Kodi Fork), but if you need Atmos audio support contained in Bluray Rips that will not work due to no Passthrough audio support. Other 5.1 / 7.1 HD audio is then used and is perfectly fine.

Vero 4K+ or AMLogic S905/S912 devices running LibreELEC / CoreELEC, they must be Gigabit equipped and a Wireless remote is a must have.

Apple TV 4K using MrMC (Kodi Fork), but if you need Atmos audio support contained in Bluray Rips that will not work due to no Passthrough audio support. Other 5.1 / 7.1 HD audio is then used and is perfectly fine.

Vero 4K+ or AMLogic S905/S912 devices running LibreELEC / CoreELEC, they must be Gigabit equipped and a Wireless remote is a must have.

I will likely add the XBOX One S/X to the list and point out 4K HDR is NOT working for experimental Kodi Leia or Plex (click)

Thanks so much.

Here's hoping that 4K HDR playback becomes a bit easier across these devices in the future and hopefully it works soon on Xbox One X.

I think I might go with Apple TV just because Im already somewhat imbedded in the "ecosystem" of Apple. TBH every single Dolby Atmos disc I've heard hasn't amazed me that much with my SJ9 sound bar. I wish rear speakers were compatible with that model So atmos isn't a deal breaker for me.

If it can't output Atmos does that mean it will just downscale to whatever the next codec is? Like 5.1, etc, etc if it's embedded into the rip?

Yes.
If there is a 7.1 Lossless (Bluray) Atmos audio soundtrack, the ATV 4K will use the base 7.1 Dolby TrueHD audio and decode that to 24bit 48kHz LPCM.
The only loss in audio quality will be the height Atmos audio effects.

(2018-10-08, 10:50)cv15xbmc Wrote: Thanks for the response, but that thread wasn’t helpful in terms of advice. Only thing I gathered was, no it doesn’t work based on people’s experiences.

Is it an issue that can’t be fixed or will 4K HDR playback work in the future possibly?

If that’s the case, what’s the alternative to the Xbox One x as a good Kodi player for 4K rips, etc?

The best one I have found so far is the nVidia Shield TV. It checks off the most boxes, even if it has some issues. The Apple TV 4K is a nice device, hobbled by quite possibly the single worst remote I have ever used. Even worse is that you can't take a remote like the Logitech Harmony and map functions that aren't supported by the Siri remote that comes with the ATV4K. So, if you're like me, and have a multi-device setup (in my case it's 5 game consoles, and a shield, all connected through an AVR that does the input switching) you can forget about the ATV unless you don't mind using a separate remote just for that. The Xbox is fine if you don't care about surround sound audio and don't want to use Netflix (at least until Netflix fixes their app). One of the best hidden features of the Xbox One is that it comes with some basic TV calibration test patterns and simple instructions on how to use them. They're basic, but they're also free, and can probably get you 70% of the way in calibrating your TV. I'm hoping that with some future dashboard update, the Xbox One will allow for audio mode switching. Right now, you set a mode, like DTS, and then you're stuck with DTS even if your source is only stereo. Your receiver thinks it's getting a 5.1/7.1 DTS signal, so even the upmixing functions don't work. Kodi can upmix audio, but apps like Netflix and Amazon Video cannot.

The biggest issue with the Shield is the color space mapping is terrible with the Oreo update. You either have to manually switch HDMI modes, and potentially recalibrate your TV every time you want to watch HDR content, or you can just find a good SDR setting and leave it at that. Depends on how much HDR content you have and how frequently you want to watch it. However, it does bitstreaming of Atmos and DTS:X, it does HDR, it does hardware H.265, gigabit ethernet, and nVidia has shown they plan to support this device for a long time, it responds to keyboard input so you can map functions to buttons on your remote, and it runs Kodi beautifully, even with some of the heavier themes like Titan. The Tegra X1 chip in it might be old, but it's still probably more powerful than anything you'll find in any other set-top box, save MAYBE the ATV4K.

A couple of others to maybe keep an eye on... Amazon is releasing an updated Fire TV stick, which seems to be combining the "Stick" and "Pendant" versions into one. It's not out until the end of the month, so no clue yet how it will perform. Biggest drawback is if you want ethernet, it's an extra $15 attachment, and it only does 10/100, so high bitrate 4K is out of the question. Xiaomi (or however you spell it) also appears set to release an updated version of their Mi Box as part of some deal with Google. Given the significant and long-standing issues with the Oreo update for the current Mi Box, may want to approach that one with caution.

I've been doing a LOT of research on this topic the past couple of weeks, so hopefully some of that was helpful to you.

There is a worksround for the appletv remote. Programm your universal remote for thefiretv remote or mce remote and map your apple tv controls for it. Apple tv allows you to map any ir remote using its builtin programming feature so you dont have to keep multiple remotes.

(2018-10-09, 21:23)ozkhan1 Wrote: There is a worksround for the appletv remote. Programm your universal remote for thefiretv remote or mce remote and map your apple tv controls for it. Apple tv allows you to map any ir remote using its builtin programming feature so you dont have to keep multiple remotes.

I tried that, but it kept saying the down button was already being used with my Harmony Hub and Companion remote. Maybe before I take it back I'll try resetting it and programming the remote before I do anything else.

(2018-10-10, 01:58)cv15xbmc Wrote: So ATV4K: no atmos, no passthrough, no 4K YouTube

The Apple TV 4K does lossy Atmos audio when using copy protected video streaming Apps like iTunes, Netlix and VUDU.

It cannot do Bluray Rips Atmos Audio passthrough.

Also to add is the Shield does below average 1080p > 4K picture upscaling. Kodi Leia has a workaround for that within 1080p / 4K resolution switching, but other Apps miss out.
The Shield also has no Dolby audio license to support older DD only equipment and no DolbyVision support if you have a 4K DV TV and Apps that support that type of HDR.

There are other limitations .....

Read the linked sticky threads at the top of the forum, there is already plenty of information already written about various platforms limitation and ongoing problems.

Still a problem. But yes, you can watch your full 4k vid library on an Xbox One. Workaround is to forget Kodi until this issue is fixed and for now use VLC Media Player which is also available in the Microsoft Store. It plays 4k vids fine with no stutter on my Xbox One S - even when streaming them from a DLNA server. Wish I could use Kodi because the UI is so much nicer, but for now this will do!

(2018-11-25, 14:51)Euro Wrote: Still a problem. But yes, you can watch your full 4k vid library on an Xbox One. Workaround is to forget Kodi until this issue is fixed and for now use VLC Media Player which is also available in the Microsoft Store. It plays 4k vids fine with no stutter on my Xbox One S - even when streaming them from a DLNA server. Wish I could use Kodi because the UI is so much nicer, but for now this will do!

Are you playing HDR UHD/4K videos - and are you playing them back in HDR or SDR?

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